The Miami Herald has the sad story of a teenager killed in a bicycle accident. The young man was a promising soccer player at the Scheck Hillel Community School and the son of the rabbi at Beit Rambam Congregation in Sunny Isles Beach.
The 17-year-old was riding his bicycle along with his brother when he was hit by a car at the intersection of 172nd Street and Collins Avenue. The young man’s brother described the scene as grisly due to the seriousness of the injuries. Emergency personnel rushed the young man to a nearby hospital where he struggled bravely for two days before finally passing. Unfortunately, restrictions imposed to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic prevented the family from being by his bedside during his final moments.
The death has had a profound impact on his school and the larger community. The Hillel Community School was the first Jewish school to win a state soccer championship in Florida when it accomplished that fact in 2016. This is just one of many tragic bicycle accident deaths that Florida in general, and Miami-Dade in particular, has experienced over the following year.
Bicycle Accident Statistics
We wish that bicycle accidents were rare, but they are not. Florida’s Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles collects bicycle crash statistics, and the numbers are alarming. The most recent numbers are for 2019, and though they are preliminary, they currently show the following:
- 6,624 bicycle crashes in the state
- 146 fatalities from bicycle collisions
- 6,221 non-fatal injuries sustained in collisions
Drilling deeper into Miami-Dade county’s statistics, we see the following:
- 818 total bicycle crashes
- 15 fatalities from bicycle accidents
- 763 non-fatal injuries from bicycle collisions
In sum, Miami-Dade experiences around 1 in 8 of the state’s bicycle accidents and about 1 in 10 fatalities. The good news is that the county’s numbers declined in 2019 compared to 2018, when we saw 822 total bicycle crashes, which resulted in 20 fatalities and 744 injuries. The decline in fatalities is good news, though non-fatal injuries can also leave a person laid up for months as they struggle to recover.
Have You Been Injured in a Bicycle Accident?
Dolan Dobrinsky Rosenblum Bluestein LLP is a leading firm that has represented many bicycle accident survivors. If you would like to discuss your case with an experienced Miami motor vehicle accident attorney, give us a call. You can schedule a free consultation if you call 305-371-2692.